Improved portable house



WILLIAM R. MEARS, 0F GRAFTON, ILLINOIS. Lmm Patent No. 88,657, zaad April' e, 1869.

DEPROVED PORTABLE HOUSE.

Tha'Bohedule rered to inv these Letters lPatent and making part of the same.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I,.W1LL1AM R. Manns, of Grafton, in the county of Jersey, and State of Illinois, have made certain new and useful Improvements in Portable Houses and Roofs; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and 'clear description thereof, referencefbeing had'to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

This invention relates to houses, walls, roofs, and similar structures, constructed ofa series of slats, with such hooks and cleats'as will enable an operator to con neet the same to joint-rods, or ridgepoles, in such manner as to form a substantial structure, giving the shelter and protection required.

The nature of said invention is inthe employment of proper hooks and cleats for attaching the slats to the joint-rods, and in the construction of shed-roofs, for` 1 hay or other grain-stacks. The nature of said invention i is in forming, by said slats and joint-rod, a hinged coverng, which shall readily accommodate itself to the -...changeable form of the stack maintaining a proper protection against moisture during vall said changes of orm.

To enable those herein skilled to make and use my said improvements, I will now more fully describe the same, referring to the accompanying Figure 1, as an elevation of a portable house, constructed in general-accordance with the nature of my said invention; to

Figure 2, as part sectional plan; to

Figure 3, as a transverse sectional elevation; to

Figure 4, as a longitudinal sectional elevation; to

Figure 5, as a detail view, showing the attachment of the hooks or cleats to the slats, as here intended.

In the construction of my said houses and roofs, I use a slat, A, usually of wood, or rolled-iron plate, or similar sheet-metal.

Said slat A will have the hook a, by means whereof it is hung upon and secured to a rod or pole, B. 4

A series of slats, A, being ptaced in oneplane consecutively upon the rod B, I cover the joint or seams betwsen said slats by the covering-slat A', the same having at each end the hooks a, for connection with the rod B, and a further rod, B', used for connecting the lower ends.

By thus connectingV the covering-slat A', at both ends, with joint-rods B B', the parts are held down and firmly secured, said slat A, in this manner, acting to secure the lower slat A.

By the arrangement of slats A A' in this wise, I form the sides of the house, as -indicated in the several figures.

In case that `it be diiicult to attach the slats to the jointrods, the holding hooks a a.' may be de tached from one end of the slats and secured upon the joint-rod, and thereupon be fastened tothe fitted slat.

Ordinarily, however, this will not be necessary, as the expert operator will readily be enabled to successively attach the several slats in forming the sides and 'ends of a structure.

In order to attach the sides and, ends of the structure tothe door, or ground, I use socket-bearings, o,

to'which the lower rods O may attach. In the usual building, and are held down by cleats a, which pass v under the rods B,said cleats being attached (similarly to the hooks al) to the covering-slat A', and being formed as indicated 1 g. 3, the change of form tnom` that of the hook a* being necessitated by the use of the rods B', for connecting the joining slats of sides of the house, and by the dilculty in connecting slats having hooks at both ends.

In order to brace the roof D, I arrange a brace, El, supported upon a centre-post, F, as shown in Said brace E bears against a rest-bar, E', passing under the roof-slats, and held in place by rest-hooks, e, secured, by screws, to the slats A.

A house, constructed as aforesaid, is firmly secured in all its parts, and may nevertheless be readily taken apart, and the several slats, rods, and other parts composing the same, may then be easily transported or handled. The house so constructed may, moreover, be arranged with doors and windows in the usual ,manner.

In case of the application of my said improvement fosforming a shed-roof for hay, or other grain-stacks, I use the slats A, with hooks a, and also the slats A'; but these will then have hooks a* at each end, andthe said slats will each connect with a ridge-pole, B, and

the slats A will, at their lower ends, connect, bytheir hooks a,'wth the rods B'. Thus the ends of all slats will be secured, and at the same time, all slats being hinged to the ridge-polefthe shed-roof thus formed will adjust itself to the form of the stack upon which it rests.

The hooks a a and cleats a? will be secured to the slats A A' by screws as, and, if said slats are of wood,

1. The slats A, with hook a, slats A', withyhooksa, ing to the floor of the structure, substantially as set combinedwith the poles B B', substantially as and for forth.

the purposes set forth. In testimony of said invention, I have hereunto set 2. The brace E, rest-bar E', rest-hooks e, and slats my hand, in the presence of- A, all combined and arranged substantially as and for W. R. MEARS.

the purpose set forth. Witnesses:

3. The slots A A', and their hooks, wheny com- GEO. P. HERTHEL, Jr.,V

bined with the rods C and socket-rest c, for attzwh- WM. W. HERTHEL. 

